Despite the evening curfew, which restricts the movement of citizens only to those who have essential business, the SDSM party is apparently holding elections preparations. Photographs from Radovis showed party activists gathered in the local branch headquarters in violation of the curfew put in place to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

SDSM is pushing for elections before the epidemic has been fully put under control, apparently hoping that low turnout and restrictions on the opposition VMRO party will benefit them – a plan that was mockingly dubbed “the corona elections” by the public. The party is using its power over the Government to violate curfew regulations, hold meetings and in many cases even buy votes by distributing food. One such campaign in the poorest neighborhoods in Kumanovo contributed to the spread of the epidemic in this city and in another instance people linked to party leader Zoran Zaev were caught distributing food during the curfew in his stronghold of Strumica using a NGO organization as a front.